In the Mist and Heat of Battle
by Gemmaaaaa
Summary: Finally the sequel to "Just Once, One More Time"! Read that first! "How can you not hate her? She look your love, she took your child from you!"


**If you have not read my other story "Just Once, One more time" then go read that first then come back or else most of this fic probably won't make sense!**

** xoxox**

The two armies stood on opposite sides, everyone was preparing themselves, the battle was going to be a terrible one. One which the histories would remember for the ages. He looked to the side and saw Arthur's face; it was grim to say the least. Doubtless he was worrying about his wife and son back home, Merlin was worried for his own child, the child he knew he had sired but had never laid eyes upon. He prayed to the Gods to keep her safe from this wherever she was.

So this was the great destiny Kilgharrah had predicted? He looked at the army of Camelot, and his heart broke knowing half of these men would never return home after today; most of his friends would be gone – Arthur could be gone. Kilgharrah had promised him peace, a golden world if he protected Arthur and he'd had it for four short years but it came at this cost. He shook his head as Arthur turned to his army to speak.

"Today I am not your King!" He took his crown from his head and dropped it to the ground with a loud thud. "I am one of you! I am a knight of Camelot; I am a soldier of Camelot! And we shall not let them pass!" The army roared its agreement. "Down there is an army from the depths of hell but let them bring Satan to our very gates because they WILL NOT PASS!" The crowd roared again but Merlin remained silent. "And when tomorrow dawns, we shall all shake hands in heaven or on the field of victory!" He raised Excalibur to the sky much as Freya had once done for him. The army followed and Arthur joined their roars this time. All these men, all these lives were to be taken because of his own actions. Had he tried harder, convinced her, none of this would be happening.

"Are you ready Merlin?" Arthur approached him and eyed the enemy army whilst he spoke.

"As I ever shall be sire." He responded dryly and Arthur nodded.

"I know this day will be hard for you…But…If I am granted the opportunity then I must take it for Camelot. You do understand?" Arthur spoke softly although most likely if someone overheard them they would not know what the King was referring too. His eyes fell to the ground and remained there whilst he spoke.

"You will kill her if you have the chance, I understand." Arthur placed a leather clad hand onto the warlock's shoulder.

"And I need you to have the same attitude Merlin." He turned to face the King with shock, it was expected for Arthur to feel like that but the King could not believe he would act in the same way.

"No."

"Merlin-" Arthur started but Merlin did not allow him to speak. He was finished allowing Arthur to control everything he did, to dictate his entire life. It was why they were here today! Why she'd turned from him again!

"No! I will not _murder _the mother of my child! You ask too much this time Arthur." The King's face radiated shock and disappointment.

"That child was a foolish mistake, the result of lust nothing more…You cannot still consider _her_ as your wife…"

"And why not? We are bound together by the Gods she will be my wife until the day one of dies…Most likely today." He spat, he was quickly beginning to get angry at the King and he could not protect Arthur if he was angry at him.

"Don't you believe that if she were to die today and we were to be victorious, it would be for the best? You could raise your child and she would be free of the poisonous ways of her mother for good."

"She is still her mother and no child deserves to lose a parent so cruelly Arthur you of all people should know that."

"She could lose two parents if you do not act wisely today. How can you not hate her? She look your love, she took your _child _from you!"

"And you hate the fact that she has a child don't you? You hate the fact that _my _child is in line for your throne, that if your son were to die without heirs she would take the throne then my child after her."

He did not wait for the King to respond instead he moved from the spot and stood beside Gwaine.

"Well Merlin, it's been quite the adventure hasn't it?" He grinned and preformed the legendary hair flip and Merlin found himself chucking.

"That it has old friend." Gwaine offered him his hand in a gesture of a final goodbye in-case one of them did not survive; Merlin took it gladly.

"Thank you for everything Merlin, you have been a true friend to me since that brawl in the tavern." He laughed.

"And you Gwaine." They shared a nod and then the horn was blown.

It was time.

Everyone began to move forward and the opposite side did the same. Soon everyone was locked in combat with someone; Merlin acquired many scratches and punches from enemies whom were quickly taken down. He had to find her, he had to protect her. Maybe he could even convince her to stop this madness. No matter the outcome he could not let Arthur kill her. No matter the consequences.

Xoxox

The battle had been raging on for hours and he hadn't seen anything of Arthur; Leon had fallen and Merlin had watched the man's death with tears falling down his cheeks and with a roar he struck down the man who committed the murder of Camelot's most loyal knight.

He had lost count of the amount of lives he had taken so far. But that's what he was, a murderer. How many lives had be claimed to protect Arthur? He loathed to think.

That was when he saw her, clad in armour fighting a knight for her life. Eventually she used her magic to send the man flying without a care for his life. Like him her armour had splashes of blood and gore across it. She had not noticed him, but he could not tear his eyes from her. Three years since he'd laid eyes on her and she'd barely changed at all, the only difference see could see from this distance was that her stomach was no longer swollen with pregnancy. She'd disappeared with his child still within her. The last time he'd seen her wasn't long after their wedding. The secret wedding, between only them and the priest. It had been perfect, shrouded in darkness with only the light of the flames their magic made dance through the air weightlessly. It had been a long and trying process of getting her to agree to wed him; she'd loved him once and he'd had to make her love him all over again. It look almost the entire pregnancy, he'd left Arthur's court to be with her, telling the King he had to be with his mother. Somehow he had managed to make her love him again, and for those few brief months his world had been perfect. She'd met his mother who could not at the time understand why she couldn't see the child; the look of heartbreak on her face when he'd told her not even he had seen the child. And likely never would.

When he'd informed Arthur of his marriage…By the Gods he'd never seen the man so angry. After a week in the dungeons, the King had relented slightly and allowed Morgana back to Camelot – only until she gave birth and then she was to leave Camelot as soon as she'd recovered. A fight had ensured and an ultimatum issued, Morgana or Arthur, his wife or his destiny.

He'd hesitated.

That's what had driven her away. That one moment of doubt that had ruined his life.

This is what this battle was about, the fight between Morgana and Arthur. He'd prayed to the Gods for something _anything _to turn back time to un-do his mistake. He'd gone to Kilgharrah too, who'd roared in anger at his foolishness and refused to admit any knowledge upon him. He hadn't summoned the dragon since. It had been three long, lonely years since then, three years since she'd given birth to his child.

The child conceived in her tiny hovel within a cloud of lust and longing for the relationship they'd once shared in Camelot. When they'd _t__ruly _loved each other and could not fathom separation. He still felt the same; although it was likely she hated him. He didn't blame her, not for a moment. She'd written to him to tell him she'd birthed a girl. That is all he'd heard of her and his child, he'd tried to find them but she'd abandoned her hovel. That didn't stop him from leaving flowers there every month, with a carved toy and a purse of gold in-case she struggled, he was a Lord and Arthur's court sorcerer after all. They were always gone when he returned. He could only pray it was indeed she that took them and not someone else that had stumbled upon the home.

He watched her raven hair flying as she fought. It was entirely fault they were like this, husband and wife, opposite sides of the battle.

He hated what he'd done to her; with the armour clinging to her he could see the weight she'd lost. Far too much weight, she'd clearly not been eating enough. Her skin was paler than it had once been and her eyes sadder.

It was his fault.

He gripped his sword tighter and prepared to meet her face to face. Fighting his way through the crowd he finally came face to face with his wife for the first time in three years.

"Merlin." She looked straight at him with no emotion and yet somehow that hurt more than if she'd looked at him with hate.

"Morgana." He breathed, he had not uttered her name aloud since she'd left and in his anger, Arthur had made a law forbidding anyone from even uttering her name.

"Husband."

"Wife."

He was unsure what to do next, he knew there was limited time before Arthur would seek her out to end this war once and for all. To in the King's belief, make Albion safer through her end.

"What's her name?" He asked and Morgana was taken by surprise and her eyes clouded over for a moment before she spoke.

"Alyssa." She stated and the breath was knocked from the warlock's chest; Alyssa was the name he'd wanted if she'd birthed a girl and he'd told her as much. He nodded slowly.

"What now Merlin? Did Arthur send you to kill me?" She hissed and took a step backwards, as if she were afraid of him.

"No." He shook his head and stepped towards her slowly.

"Then what? I'm sure you did not seek me out in the mist of battle to ask our daughters name."

"I'm begging you, stop this madness! Arthur has lifted the bans on magic and sorcerer's fight on our side today; there is no more reason for your hate! Come back, come back and he'll unbanish you I'll make sure of it." He pleaded; if she surrendered then if Arthur still wished her death, he could get them to safety somewhere they could start all over again, raise their child together. Somewhere where she would not have to live in fear of Arthur and his knights arresting her.

"And what about all the lives taken by Uther and your precious Arthur?" She spat and the sheer anger upon her face made him step back slightly, in this moment she reminded him of Uther Pendragon so caught up in his hate he had forgotten what was right and true. She had truly become her father.

"That was before Morgana! If you carry on like this you will become like Uther himself! A tyrant, is that what you want?" She stepped forward dangerously.

"I am _nothing _like that man!"

"You are everything like that man now!" He cried back which provoked her enough to lunge at him with her sword; he only just managed to block it with his own. He would not fight to hurt her, only to defend himself.

"You have to stop, if you care so much for the lives lost then why lead more men to their deaths?" He tried once more to highlight her hypocrisy but she continued to fight him, neither had used magic, neither willing to use the gifts which had bound them to each other to harm the other.

"Because those people deserve to be avenged! And if you are too weak to it then I shall!" The witch shouted at the warlock.

"Not like this Morgana!" He threw his sword onto the earth, onto the earth mixed with innocent men's blood and raised his arms. "It doesn't have to be like this."

Morgana stood still for a few moments and only the screams of dying men and the clashes of swords could be heard.

"And you believe Arthur would not execute me the moment he had a chance?"

He couldn't lie, she would feel it, but he could not be truthful either, because the truth would only force her into action and he needed her calm. She was almost most rational when she was calm – which was rare.

"You don't need to go to Arthur if you do not wish it! I'll make sure he never finds you, or Alyssa. I won't let him hurt you." He stepped toward her slowly but stopped when she stepped back.

"You expect me to believe you? After everything? You choose Arthur over me once before why shouldn't you now?" He physically flinched at her words, they cut deep. After his betrayal by choosing Arthur she had begun heading down a dark path. It was ruined his life. His destiny with Arthur had ruined his life; had cost him too high a price but he had not been able to see it until it was too late.

"I was torn! Arthur was my destiny-"

"And I was your wife!"

The use of the word 'was' broke his heart, did she no longer see him as her husband? For some strange reason the thought made him think of that bastard Agravaine, he'd tried to hate himself for killing him but he could not. Before his death Merlin had informed the man that Morgana carried _his _child within her. She'd chosen _him._ The shock in his eyes had given him a sense of triumph and victory. He hated to admit but he had _enjoyed _watching the life fade from the bastard's eyes. He'd pleaded with Morgana, when she had him tied up in her hovel, not to sleep with Agravaine. He could only pray she hadn't, but the very image of Agravaine bedding _his _wife – even before they were married – had his magic working and Arthur's uncle flying across the rocks, a final snap of bone revealing that the deed was done.

Agravaine had wanted her.

And Merlin had gotten her.

"You're still my wife Morgana! If I could go back I would! But it was so hard, you have to understand that. But you began growing darker, acting more and more in spite and there was a distance between us…" He had to raise his voice above the battle sounds so she would hear him.

"Because of Arthur." She shouted back.

"Because it was not you! It was Morgause! Whenever you spoke it was Morgause's voice I heard not yours! It's still Morgause's voice I hear today and I curse the day that woman came into our lives. She destroyed everything; corrupted you and destroyed our relationship! Everyone you ally yourself with Morgana has corrupted you! Last year your latest _friend_, he spat the word towards her, Lycia forced Gwen into a miscarriage with dark magic-" He ranted.

"She did what?" Morgana sounded shocked, as if she did not know of her friend's deeds.

"She never told you?" Morgana stepped back and dropped her sword; could she truly not have known? Would she have stopped the woman from committing the sinful murder of Arthur's unborn child?

"Oh my God…" Morgana shook her head. "She wouldn't…She has a son…She lost a child herself…She would never do that! You're lying!" Her eyes flashed golden in her anger and he felt his own magic hum in response.

"You know I would never lie about something like that Morgana. Please…Look at what you are doing! You say you wish for peace but now peace has been achieved you attempt to destroy it!" He was angry now, angry at her, angry at Morgause, angry with Lycia, angry at Arthur and angry with himself.

"It must be!" She tried but she sounded unsure herself which he was glad for, it was progress.

"You know it's not Morgana…" He moved toward her and pulled her into his arms; she resisted and fought him, scratching, hitting and slapped him across the cheek before she resisted and melted into the embrace.

"I never knew!" She suddenly began weeping and he pulled her further into his arms, they hadn't been so close in years. "I would have stopped her..." She stuttered as the tears fell from her cheeks.

"I know." He kissed her head and breathed in her scent, even though the smell of blood everywhere, she still smelled like…Morgana.

"I hate you." She whispered so quietly he almost didn't hear it over the sounds of battle. He knew her words were true, but only to a certain extent, he knew that now. It was true for him too, how strange it was to hate the woman he loved with the same passion as the love he bore her.

"I know." He repeated. In truth he didn't know what else to say. She was calm, she was in his arms in the mist and heat of the battle, they were so close. He would only have to lean down slightly to connect their lips again. To place his lips where they belonged – against hers.

Something to his left caught his eye and he angled his head to see better and saw none other than Arthur Pendragon fighting a few meters away from them. He had to think of something fast before the Pendragon siblings laid eyes upon each other for the first time. He could imagine it, no one fighting, just watching as brother and sister, King and heir, fought for their lives, fought for vengeance; fought a fight that should have ended years ago.

If Arthur and Morgana fought, one of them would fall; one would leave a child behind them. A daughter without a mother or a son without a father.

He would lose one of the two people he cared most about.

And he would not let that happen.

He pulled Morgana tighter into his arms and tried to ignore how right it felt to have her so close again, especially when she tried to pull herself from his grasp. For a few moments they struggled with Merlin trying to keep his back to the King so he would not see her.

"What the hell do you think you're doing Merlin?!" She shouted still trying to release herself from his hold once more.

"Keep still Morgana!" He ordered but she was ever the stubborn mare and fought harder. He hissed as her nails bit into his skin and resisted the urge to cry out.

"Merlin!"

Gods no.

Arthur had seen him; suddenly the feeling of his blood trickling down his hand due to his wife's nails was not in his mind.

"Arthur." Morgana gasped and finally managed to free herself from him and slowly moved towards Arthur.

"So this is finally what it comes down to?" Arthur asked, but Merlin noticed him gripping his sword tighter, a sign he was preparing to strike. That's when a terrifying thought came to Merlin's mind – Morgana didn't have her sword! One false move and she would die, if her magic was not quick enough then Arthur would take advantage.

"I asked for a chance a long time ago brother and you denied it, this is your doing."

Arthur frowned.

"This is entirely you're doing Morgana, your hatred and bitterness have destroyed so many lives, including our father's! And today you shall pay for it." Arthur allowed her no time to respond; instead he lunged at Morgana who narrowly missed being run through with a side step. Merlin was desperate, how could he stop this? There had to be a way to stop this! Arthur could not be allowed to kill her. But nor would he allow her to kill Arthur.

After a few minutes of the fight Arthur had the upper hand after Morgana tripped and fell to the ground. The King hovered above her with his sword ready to strike.

"I'm sorry, I'm truly sorry Morgana," Arthur's voice was so thick with emotion; he sounded as if he would cry, "but everything will be better this way. Your daughter shall be into her father's care, you will no longer be a threat to Camelot and we will truly have peace."

Morgana opened her mouth to speak but Arthur shook his head and raised his sword above his head, ready to drop the blade into Morgana's body. Why wasn't she using magic to defend herself? Arthur began to drop the blade when Merlin shouted the spell.

He watched the after effects of his spell. The look of betrayal he received. He looked to the sky and silently prayed for the Gods forgiveness for what he had just done. Prayed to the Gods and to Gaius, his father, Freya, Will, everyone for forgiveness.

He looked down at the unconscious Arthur Pendragon and wanted to cry. He'd betrayed his King, his friend, his destiny.

He looked at Morgana, the darkness to his light, the hatred to his love. He'd betrayed Arthur for her. He felt a sudden overwhelming hate for the woman, and an equal amount of love. She was still on the ground, staring at him with complete shock on her features. Without thinking he gathered her into his arms and whispered the spell.

"Bedyrne ús! Astýre ús þanonweard." And felt the world shift as they disappeared.

Xoxox

It had been six years since he'd betrayed Arthur Pendragon in battle and disappeared into thin air with Morgana. It had been…Hard to build some remnants of a life after that day but they'd done it. They had gone to Ealdor and built their own home together, Alyssa was now nine years of age and was the apple of her grandmother's eye, his too.

He'd never known such love to exist until he'd set eyes on the sleeping child that day of battle. If he was honest with himself she was the only reason he'd managed to stay at first, he had been so racked with guilt not even Morgana knew what to say.

After months together, he felt as though he merely existed…That he did not live anymore. Especially when he'd found out that Arthur hadn't issued a warrant for his arrest for treason – he'd told the people he'd been killed in battle! Morgana too. He'd felt then that his live was over, he could not return to Camelot now. His friends…Thought he was dead. He'd never speak to them again; never lay eyes upon Camelot's great citadel again. Again he felt the overwhelming hatred for Morgana course through his veins. This time it lasted more than a few seconds although it only took one glance out of the small window and to see Morgana playing with Alyssa through the glass and he forgot all about the hate and could not help the smile that grew upon his face. He felt blessed to actually be able to be a part of that child's life, to hear her little voice cry "papa" whenever she saw him.

Many things could be said about Morgana, many things indeed but one of things would be that she was a great mother. That could never be disputed. It was what made him forgive her, for all transgressions against him. Slowly he began to put his life in Camelot behind him; slowly they began to grow together once more.

Their progress began when she'd finally found out the stories of their deaths, she'd simply put her arms around him and whispered "I'm sorry." Before disappearing into another room. It was surreal they slept in the same bed but never touched each other. Until she'd had one particularly bad nightmare of him not reacting in time, of Arthur's blade piercing through her armor then skin. He'd held her until she was calm and then he could not help himself; she looked so vulnerable, so much like her old self he leaned down and connected their lips. It was soft at first but they always were too greedy with each other; it became hot, wet, and passionate very quickly.

"Make love to me." She'd whispered when they'd pulled apart panting.

And he was lost within her.

Xoxox

**This is the official sequel to "Just Once, One More Time". I didn't want it to be that immediately after the baby they would be back to being completely in love and everything would be perfect. No this is Merlin and Morgana. She has done too many things for Arthur to forgive and Merlin cannot help but choose Arthur until the very last moment. I hope this didn't disappoint anyone…But at least they get back together in the end. **

**Oh and there will be other oneshots in this universe! There's lots of stories to be told within this oneshot don't you think? If you have any ideas of oneshots within this universe let me know and I'll do what I can! (If you have anything you'd like to see written that isn't in this universe then also let me know!)**

**Please review and let me know what you think guys!**


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